Dunta Robinson apologizes about the pay me shoes…sorta

As a minor distraction from the loss on Sunday was the issue of Dunta Robinson’s footwear. I probably love shoes more than most Texan fans, but not Robinson’s shoes that read “Pay me Rick.” Via SportsRadio 610, you can see the original video about this here.

To use the unfortunate modern turn of phrase, fans especially “in this economy” didn’t like the implication that close to $10 million for choosing to skip camp means not getting paid. Today, Robinson got a lot of questions about his shoes, and he answered them. Here’s a press Q&A from today to read part of the conversation and/or watch the video with Robinson’s and Gary Kubiak’s comments if you care about this situation. I recommend watching the video if you are able:

He gives the “if it offended anyone, I apologize for it” sort of apology.

Kubiak says that they are moving on. They got football to play. I think that is the right approach.

So, I ask if you have something to say about this, please at least read the Q&A or watch the video before saying anything because it makes for better comments.

And if you like shoes a lot, please check out Manolo, The Shoeblogger. The Manolo was one of the first people to illustrate to me what blogs can do and how fun a blog on just one subject can be. The Manolo is superfantastic and an inspiration. I am guessing that he would not approve of the “Pay me Rick” shoes, even as the joke.

I think Dunta is gonna be surprised at what the Reliant Stadium crowd has in store for him in 2 weeks, especially because I have little doubt the Texans will be 0-2. This whole scenario with him just boggles my mind. I thought the 23 million guaranteed was more than he was worth, considering what he showed last year coming off the serious injury. I can’t believe he thinks and somebody is advising him he is worth more. He has never been to a Pro Bowl, and I don’t think anybody would have him listed as one of the top 10 corners in the league. But I assumed the Texans offered him that much $ based on his leadership skills and intangibles and now he pulls this. I remember his post game interviews where he could barely contain himself because his hatred of losing and his will to win was killing him. A lot of Texans fans were hoping when he got back this year we would see the D get better, but now it appears as if Dunta doesn’t really care about that, as long as he gets his stats, he will get paid and I guess he’ll be all good. I’m just getting a really bad 2005 vibe from this whole thing right now. This team comes in with higher expectations, some experts picking them to win the division, and the whole thing just sort of goes splat right in their faces, and ours too. Hopefully I’m just in full panic mode, but even still it just sucks that as a Texan fan I feel that way after one game. We’ve just seen this before, and for me, they are going to have to earn it on the field. Until then, I’m expecting the worst, and right now I think another mediocre season of 8-8 might just be the best we will get.

If I recall, Dunta’s degree is in communication (even if it is from South Carolina–not Duke, Harvard, nor even UT Austin), and his apology smacked of PR classes and focus groups and agent-think. He wasn’t sorry (he has been smirking both last night and today), just disappointed he didn’t get a laugh and some love. In political terms, I think he’s lost touch with his base.

I don’t like Kubiak’s response much, but I think in general GK lacks a sense of the theatrical (Parcells and Lombardi were really the best at that end of coaching). He could easily blow this up a little to put some heat under the discipline issue. Of course, he kind of let that go by not noticing the shoes at the time (I bet Belichik or Gruden would have noticed–and I’m sure Merton Hanks of the NFL office will be fining him for a uniform violation). Of course, Kubiak also let go the whole issue of his OC calling stupid plays and not making adjustments. I don’t think Kubiak can handle a whole lot on his mind during a game, and as someone else has commented, his brain freezes up. Then later he holds himself “accountable.”

I do think Kubiak needs to get his mind in the game or he will lose the respect of his players (although they will mostly support him, because he doesn’t seem to make it too hard on anyone–see Weaver, Anthony, and Green, Ahman). As it is, it looks like he’s let at least one group (the O line) get soft and unfocused (the good news is that Caldwell may be an O-line DeMeco-type guy, and he outweighs Myers). If he also lets Dunta influence the defensive backs, who are playing like morons right now, well, might that not be another problem? Do you really want Bryce McCain tuning out the coaches and “thinking for himself”?

OK, counselor, I know you will respond like a good adversarial attorney and point out where I got it wrong, and I will look forward to seeing where you get it right(er).

Do you think we have the slightest chance against Tennessee? The way they play gap-control, we won’t be running the ball much, and if they can slug Schaub a few times, there goes the passing game, no? The only hope is that Gary the K and Kid Shanny find the Lamp of Boldness and remember that Andre Johnson can chew up Cortland Finnegan and spit him out. At least, that’s how this Houston Cougar sees it.

Pretty non-apologetic apology. I’m sure after the performance yesterday he wants to downplay the whole incident as “no big deal,” but it really seems like the kind of selfish, immature thing you’d expect to see from Ochocinco or T.O., not from somebody who claims to be a leader on the field. And the whole “I’m sorry if anyone was offended” is a transparent attempt to smooth things over with the fan base, without really saying he’s sorry for having done it.I’d be happy if he (and the rest of the defense) showed the same passion for playing tough, physical football as he apparently has for getting more than the $10 million he’ll pocket this season…

The best thing I heard about Dunta’s shoes was an emailer to the 610 radio guys (I can’t remember if it was last night or this morning). The emailer said Rick Smith should write “For what?” on his shoes. That about sums it up. The writing and his statements were simply an embarrassment. They would have been an embarrassment if he had a great game, even more so that he couldn’t suck enough.

Sitting here reading some of these comments has me putting 2 and 2 together, not sure what I am coming up with but the mind refuses to stop when I’m awake, lol. Most comments talk about the perceived lackluster performance of DR yesterday of which I saw too and pretty much feel the same way. Here’s where my math kicked in. Now I understand pro football players are supposed to be just that, PROfessional, and I have heard ad nauseum about how they don’t allow personal things to interfere or non football interests to get in the way of their playing. However, do you think there’s a chance he really doesn’t care that much anymore? To me all his posturing and negotiating about his contract and then this Franchise Tag ordeal and him making such a huge issue out of it might have him “writing” his part in. I mean how do you compare his play now with what he used to be because the injury was of questionable repair or the place where his healing was at least questionable last year so with no real or accurate barometer for his ‘normal’ play maybe he thought no one could really judge. And as such maybe he felt he could get away with that, remember just a few weeks ago we were all discussing about him not needing to get hurt because that would seriously dampen any further contract talks which is what he was after. Plus the notion of him turning down those multi year contracts that were supposed to be in the realm of top 5 CB money and becoming livid at the reality of him being franchised led me to think he wanted OUT of here. Add to that his propensity for showing his emotions over a loss several years back and I guess you can see where I am going with this. I know, I know, you’re going to say “Rick, you think too much, QUIT IT!” LOL

[Rick, I have no problem with thinking, but yeah, on this point you are overthinking it. DR gets paid if he is prepared and plays well. It was a mistake for him to sign his tender so late if he wasn't going to be ready. -S]

First off, this is a great blog – I’ve enjoyed reading it for a while. Thanks for putting in the time, Stephanie.

I’ve been a season ticket holder since the beginning and Sunday was a huge disappointment. I just want to see the Texans being competitive and showing some fight. As a fan, I just want to have a team that I feel good rooting for. I want guys that care about the team, guys that want to compete for each other. They were so flat against the Jets and just got totally dominated – that was the frustrating thing. Clearly they’d read all the press clippings predicting “playoffs” and forgot about the work involved in getting there.

I was annoyed by the story about Donta and his shoes initially. It was not the type of thing I expect of him or any Texans player. But you know, he suffered a horrific injury. Quite frankly, we’re lucky (and he’s lucky) that he can still play. He got a HUGE ovation during the intros before the game and I thought that was awesome. It’s always been clear how much he cares about the Texans and about winning and that was the disconnect about this story. He’s never been (or at least, he’s never seemed to have been) a selfish guy. So, I’m willing to accept his explanation and I believe what he said on the video. I think he is sorry for the impression he gave to the fans and I really think he is a team guy. But in that moment when he tore his ACL and had his hamstring ripped COMPLETELY off the bone – he understood that a football career is a fleeting thing and he needs to get paid when he can. I can’t fault him for that – even if he has perhaps lost a little sense of perspective about what $10 million means.

I was pretty bummed yesterday afternoon, but I’m starting to recover. I think they’ll show up in Tennessee with something to prove and I expect a good showing. It’s a great opportunity for a team that needs to show toughness to go up against Jeff Fisher and the Titans. I’m definitely looking forward to our next home against Jacksonville. The regular season lasts into 2010 – there’s time to get this thing turned around.Go Texans!

[Thanks. Wearing these shoes for the opener was poor judgment. Not making an unequivocal apology is also poor judgment. His whole contract negotiation has shown poor judgment. People who are secure in themselves do not have problems apologizing when they make mistakes. -Steph]

shoes!!? shoes!? seriously… your talkin about shoes… the whole damn team gets steam rolled and all we worried about is what shoes somebodies wearin!? the coach started him anyway so what does that tell us’ “attitude reflects leadership” he has none. why keep a player that doesnt want to be here? trade the man and be done with it, like i said b4 these chumps are still gettin our money if we boo them or not. nobody responds to kubiak, nobody is motivated to play for him (when are they ever motivated To play when it counts the most) or know whats goin on during the game. Dunta was gone a long time ago his tone completly sounds like he could give a damn, next year he is gone n plenty others will follow. Andre you have my sympathy

In order to begin changing the team’s culture, the “kids” need to get their backs up and speak out against such selfish “leadership.” And, while they’re at it, I hope that some of them have the fortitude to challenge the coaches to improve their preparation, and the GM to find a way to sign the person who is the best POSITIVE leader of the defense.

I for one don’t agree with most of the sentiment that will be posted. I think by his comments, he was making a joke. And apparently the joke wasn’t for you, the fan, but for his teammates. (Note: I bet Ryans and Daniels got a chuckle)

I figure that most people will feel that he is disconnected from a reality that you and I live in, AND he does. He is a professional football player. I am not arguing that he is smartest guy in the room (that’s most evident with him reportedly turning down 23mil guaranteed), but I do know that he can play football.

The biggest disconnect in this entire thing are the fans themselves. The outrage is the part I have the biggest problem with. Not only was his reaction posted on Chron.com but it was also in Kuharsky’s column on ESPN, and with it a disclaimer about his non-apology apology. Heck, I feel he didn’t need to apologize for anything. He made a statement and a silly one since he can’t negotiate contracts, and that’s that. And his no comment speaks volumes to me. His shoes have become a scapegoat in many ways. Why were there so many follow up questions at his press conference? My take is that reporters know what really get the fires going of the public. High salaries, negotiations, and the perks of being a “spoiled” athlete always get the blood boiling to the reading and viewing public. But in the end you keep paying them so the joke is on you.

I know I will probably take a beating in the best Texans Blog on the planet for the comments I made, but if you feel you can go earn 23mil guaranteed from the Houston Texans at corner, by all means go do it these guys need the help. Then you as a player can represent the perfect blend of reality, humility, and philanthropy that most fans crave. By the way, Dunta can play corner, and I don’t know who you think the Texans have that can replace him with.

[Thanks. Yup, the Texans don't have great options at corner, so even an ill-prepared, winded, having problems tackling corner is better than the options they have. Sad. I get that he thought it was a joke. We'd be done talking about it if he just apologized for his poor judgment. Maybe it doesn't hurt his status as a leader, but what sort of leadership do the Texans have if there's nobody willing to tell him that wearing those shoes is a bad idea, whether the team wins or loses? But yeah, DR is not gifted in the apologizing art--sometimes people smarter and older than he is aren't either. -Steph]

Dunta Robinson you are a selfish, spoiled and ungrateful person who sadly is taking up space and wasting oxygen on this planet. One child dies every 4 seconds from starvation in the world, another dies every 15 seconds of preventable diseases and still another dies every 33 seconds from some form of physical abuse.Maybe they should wear signs around their necks that say “Feed Me Dunta”, “Buy me medicine Dunta”, “Protect me from my abusive father Dunta”. They wouldn’t have any shoes to write their pleas on.

I hope your 10 million dollars a year, for a job you obviously can not perform well at, gives you satisfaction and peace when you sleep at night. It certainly won’t buy you an inch of forgiveness when you stand before God one day. You should have stayed hurt and gotten a real, honest to goodness job and discovered what it’s like for humans to survive everyday and NOT COMPLAIN about making $ 10 an hour.

I have an open invitation to you. I am returning to Liberia, Africa on September 20th of this year. Please come with me and help me run the orphanage and mission my wife and I direct outside of Monrovia. You can meet real Africans and real children who have seen their brothers and sisters and parents murdered before their eyes. Pay is lousy, it’s a volunteer position and the comforts you are used to might escape you. But it just might make you appreciate the fact you are a millionaire and never have to worry about the problems that these children face everyday, every hour, every minute and every second.

Steph, isn’t the untimely nature of Dunta’s shoe message intellectually consistent with his decision to leave $13 million of guaranteed income on the table during his recent contract negotiations?

[In the video, he contends that he made those shoes up months ago. Maybe when he was still negotiating his long term contract. And then just picked those shoes to wear for the game. So he says it wasn't really meant as a message now. But as to your overall point, yeah, Rick tried to pay him, and Dunta wasn't having it. It reminds me of the old country saying, "Pigs get fed, hogs get slaughtered." -Steph]

I personally blame all of this on TEXANSCHICK. Why you ask? Well because since the begining of time women have been nothing but trouble. What does that have to do with D.R. and the Texans? Not a Damn Thing, I just need someone to blame other than my home team.

Seriouly,

D.R., I will be totally fine in seeing you gone next year. If this is the defense he is going to play, we can play our rookies and let them get some reps. He did not make any gamechanging plays. Actually in some ways he hurt our team with his plays.

On another note, I don’t know why but i actually think that the Texans might pull this Tenn. game off. I think they will play way harder and that won’t be enough. WE will get a couple of lucky breaks and steal one. Damn-it here goes my HOMER predictions again.

[Actually, blaming me makes about as much sense as all sorts of things people have been blaming the loss on. When the team loses, seems like everybody loses their minds, says all sorts of crazy stuff. -Steph]

To me this is a none issue. If the texans beat the Jets, and Dunta somehow was a major contributor to said victory, right now we’d be chanting, yes Rick, pay him.

It just stings a little more when you get embarassed at home by a rookie, and you (DUNTA) were a part of the problem. If Dunta or any other Texan feels like they are worth more money and there agent cant get it for them, I could care less, as a fan of the team, I just want to see wins. And if I dont see those, atleast effort. Neither was witnessed on Sunday, and now a disctraction has been created.

So even if Dunta does well this upcoming Sunday, or falls on his face, this will forever follow him, and mark my words, the signs for trading Dunta or releasing him will soon follow. At my very unofficial count Ive seen over 30 so far on the chron blogs..As if waiving a top 10 guy at his position will cure the Texans woes..(yes Texan Fan despite it all when healthy, and once knowledgable of the D, Dunta is a pretty good CB)

Someone on a previous blog put it best, Dunta inspired me. I think the next time im at reliant, and the Texans are well, being the Texans, I’m going to write Reimburse me Bob on my shoes, shirt and sign. Followed by this..

Welcome to Houston

Formerly House of Pain

now House of Shame….

Signed

Texans Fan

[The Texans tried to give him a long term deal, one by most accounts would have been very generous. He rejected it. It's one thing if he wears those shoes where nobody else can see them. But to publicly wear shoes that suggesting that he isn't getting paid, even when he IS getting paid to the tune of almost $10 m bucks for showing up just in time to get paid (and be not ready as he himself admitted) is ridiculous. In this economy, it is extraordinarily poor judgment to wear shoes that say it--whether in a win or in a loss. It is an insult to people who struggle to pay their bills, and an insult to those who used some of their money to see he and his teammates stink up Reliant. When you apologize to those "you offend" what you really are saying is that you don't think you did anything wrong at all, but if to those who are overly-sensitive you are sorry. That is a lame apology.. But why should we expect anything different from Robinson--he's not big at taking responsibility for anything going wrong, including not being prepared due to his own stupid choices this offseason. He's working on his new excuses if he plays poorly. This isn't a huge deal where somebody should get cut or whatever--it is just sad. -Steph]

Kubiak says that they are moving on. They got football to play.Um, correct me if I’m wrong, but they have already played one game so far in this season – and we have yet to see the Texans “play football” in any meaningful sense. Isn’t this sort of a cop-out?I don’t know what I’m looking for in terms of WORDS – which are mostly worthless in this context – but I can say that standard, pat comments like “we’re moving on” and “we’ve got to put this behind us” and even “we’ve got football to play” don’t satisfy.They were supposed to have played football last week. They were supposed to be “putting the bad days behind them” starting with this season.This team is 2-9 in September during the Kubiak regime. When does the “moving on” begin? And wouldn’t you expect them to “move on” to something that looks a lot better than what they came from?

…DR gets paid if he is prepared and plays well… -S] –Posted by: Rick630c1 at September 14, 2009 10:07 PMNo, Steph, since the Texans tendered him, and he signed, he gets paid just for showing up. “Preparation” and “playing well” aren’t factors once he’s under contract, since I doubt any such contract (or “tender” or whatever the h*ll the legal term is now) will have stipulations for performance – the NFLPA wouldn’t allow it.This is the point: He GETS PAID. This whole “pay me” mentality is awfully hard to take for, say, someone like me who’s been out of work for four months with not much prospects in sight.You make light of saying “in this economy.” It’s apparently not real to you, just as it’s not even a gleam in the eye of someone like D-Rob. But I assure you, it is VERY real to a lot of people who AREN’T buying season tickets or even single-game tickets this year.

… the whole damn team gets steam rolled and all we worried about is what shoes somebodies wearin!? –Posted by: Hardknocks at September 14, 2009 10:24 PMFirst of all, it had nothing to do with “what shoes he was wearing,” it had to do with a “message” he was trying to send: That a young man who is making about $10 million over the next four months, wants to “get paid.”And second, there are a great many people who take note of that message – “pay me” – and wonder if the attitude behind it might possibly correlate with a supposed “star” on the team who had one tackle, several missed tackles, and who was part of a defensive secondary that was mauled AT HOME by a rookie quarterback starting on a team that went 9-7 last season.It didn’t matter the mode of the communication, the message was loud and clear. As D-Rob himself said in the postgame interview “this (getting paid) is why we come out here to play.” One wonders if perhaps “winning” is optional for D-Rob.

[My thoughts: 1. the shoes were a poor judgment call; 2. he should have done a real apology; 3. it's not The Issue with the loss; 4. The teams has fundamental inherent issues that go waaaay beyond shoes; 5. Only those people who ignored those deficits are particularly surprised by Sundays results. -Steph]

[That is only an excerpt of his entire presser. -S] –Posted by: fool at September 15, 2009 08:52 AMThat’s not the point, Steph. You and I both know you could come up with a couple of dozen standard statements culled from any number of post-loss pressers, and string them together in any fashion to compose the NEXT post-loss press statement.My point is that as vacuous as they inevitably are, statements like “we’re moving on” and “we’re putting it behind us” imply that something’s about to change.If so, what?

[What it means is that they are going to focus on football and not stupid stuff. Only the media wants to focus on stupid stuff because it is more fun than talking about how Jenkins owned the Texans line or any number of X & O things. -Steph]

On the broadcasted game, they showed a little old lady wearing a Texans jersey giving two thumbs down. Does anyone have the capability to transfer that image to PC? I want to create a motivational poster for the Texans…….goes like this.

UNACCEPTABLE – When even your grandma knows you sucked.

Seriously, can anyone get this image?

[Memo to self: do not hire Capt Obvious as motivational speaker. I will assure you that as disappointed as you are, the team is much more disappointed. -S]

Owen was upset and let the reporters know it. De Meco stated that he was going to play and everything will take care of itself. Two good players that should get paid and take pride in themselves and the team. Wearing shoes that he had made months before and stating that he wasn’t ready for the game conditioning wise. Sorry Dunta you were an inspiration for everything you did to come back and you usually made the team better when you played, but look at us now. Before the game our players were laughing at it instead of getting ready for the game. Maybe that is why we played so SOFT. Get your head on straight because what you were going to get paid was more than what you’ll get next year.

The shoes was a bad idea, a reall bad real dumb idea. D Rob prolly did’nt think it would be that big of a deal since he thought they would win, and if they did it prolly would’nt have been. the defense was far from the only problem, what dissapointed me the absolute most was how bady the oline and Shuab played, Shuab reminded me of Carr in that game, so quick to get rid of the ball and not assertive what so ever. the lone drive we did manage to put anything together we fumble in the redzone…geez! i did not expect our offense to get man handled like that, the defense played decent in the first half but still could not get off the field on 3rd downs.

honestly my head hurts thinking about it.. im still trying stay positive, i really doubt we will look that bad all season. =

I get what youre saying about Dunta’s poor judgment given the economic woes the Country is going through. But from a fan of football perspective I just want to see my team win.If its at home in front of my TV or god willing at Reliant (and that wont be for a while).

Dunta has effectively created a distraction..A very poor one, but a distraction none the less.

Right now the Texans are 0-1 and barring some miracle in Tenn. i forsee 0-2. I assure you at 0-2 the last thing on anyone’s mind will be Dunta’s shoes.

I agree with a tweet you posted last night. When fans start talking Taylor Mays that tells me, there’s a low opinion of the team. Taylor’s a top 10 pick. The Texans would have really blow it this year to land him. Ive searched many a fan blog last night and saw his name mentioned. Fans of a team dont A talk draft this early, and B talk top 10 picks unless they really think there teams about to tank.

I was once about as negative as i came when talking Texans, but since I moved to San Antonio, I realized how much I hate the Cowboys and How much my home team needs support.

Dunta’s shoes aside, if he can provide crucial run support and stop Chris Johnson from creating on the cutback I dont care if he’s barefeet, im going to cheer for him. Oh and if he’s not to busy, come up with an interception, as he hasnt had one of those in quite some time.

I’m not too worried about the shoes or the apology. I’d compare it to me deciding to wear a Hawaiian shirt to work one Friday (remember Hawaiian shirt day from Office Space?), then finding out our best customer is unhappy and visiting that day. Seemed like a fun idea at first, but once I got there, it was the wrong thing at the wrong time. Hopefully I brought another shirt.

As for the apology, when is the last time a public figure made an apology that seemed sincere? Why is this a big deal? Shouldn’t the offensive players be apolgizing for how crappy they played instead of Dunta for his shoes? I really don’t care what they say or how they say it – apologize by playing well (not just playing better, playing well. It will take a lot of playing better to get to playing well). In fact, that’s how you should be asking to get paid also.

And Dunta is still trying to get paid. He’s playing for next year’s check. Yes, he’s getting a lot this year, but right now, his income for 2010 is zero. He needs to realize that 2010 contract is going to depend a lot more on his play than on his shoes, and get himself right for the rest of the season.

LMAO If you get one of those posters figured out, please, please, oh please keep me in the loop. I want, no, NEED one. I swear “we”/you could make a mint. I say we, heck, I’ll do all the footwork if you can just put it together, lol.

Dunta you’re a JERK but if my comments offend you, well you know I kinda apologize.

The Texans are labeled as soft and not tough enough. Rick Smith did fire the head strength coach.

No surprise, Garcia and Feely signed 1 day after week 1. No surprise that neither signed with the Texans. Texans can’t flush $3 million they paid to sign Orlovsky in a haste 48 hours after trading Sage. This could turn in to another Texans SNAFU.

Dunta’s a punk. I cannot believe that after showing his *** all preseason, he STILL felt like he had more *** to show.

“poor tackling… we can fix that…” HYEAH!!! In drills in PRESEASON!!! JERK!

“PAY ME?!?” Seriously??? “PAY ME?!?” You are going with that? I gotta’ tell ya’ DeeeRob, I regret every second I spent pulling for you to successfully rehab that knee. You deserve to know what its like trying to make an honest living, and I fully expect you to squander any money you make in the NFL and to be a one-liner on an ESPN ticker one of these days.

first of all fool stfu…. my comment wasnt toward you or anybody its my opinion… second i knew what his was tryin to advertise on his shoes (Which is not a joke or funny when our team hasnt had a winnin record in 7yrs) but somehow after watchin Myers get folded like a paper napkin, kubiak has less fire than a bowl of ice cream, our #3 offense looked like a joke and didnt attempt to get the best reciever in the league the ball?, the people that punked you called you a finesse team and thats how you play, but all yall can think about is one player to talk about? well since everbody feels like lookin at what their shoes say …these players should join in this new form of expression:

[Memo to self: do not hire Capt Obvious as motivational speaker. -S] –Posted by: Capt Obvious at September 15, 2009 09:51 AMMaybe he could work for these guys.FWIW, Steph, I wish I could take your word for it, that “as disappointed as the fans are, the team’s even more disappointed.” I admit to extreme doubts.I know what I saw on Sunday, and I just didn’t see a whole lotta “care” out there.

Do you remember a few years ago when after a loss like that DR would go deliever an outspkoen rant on the failure of the defense and team members and coaches (R Smith) that were not doing their job? I saw no outrage at the Texans coaches or players this time…….

Anyone who thinks the flap about the shoes is REALLY about the shoes, is ignoring the obvious.No, Stephanie, it isn’t “stupid stuff” to suggest that maybe some of the “team leaders’” heads aren’t in the game.Listen, this wasn’t one of those games that was one “Rosencopter” short of victory, it was a badly-played affair by the Texans from start to nearly the finish, with only one or two bright spots (none of which Mr. “Pay Me” had any part in).I say again: if you don’t think that the “motivation” of certain players on this team is in question, then I don’t think we need ever to talk about “intangibles” or “winning attitude” or any of that stuff ever again.You can’t say “it matters” when they win, but NOT when they lose.It matters constantly.

But I assure you, it is VERY real to a lot of people who AREN’T buying season tickets or even single-game tickets this year.

I promise you it isn’t a matter of choice for me, there is no, I can or I can’t or I ‘are’ or I ‘aren’t’. It is a matter of I haven’t been able to afford to go to a professional football game since the ’80′s and even then it was when one of my venders showed up at my office with “free” tickets. Take my 2 sons and as much cash as my wife and I could get together in order to afford a dog or 2 and something to drink and that was our extent. Granted, we always had a great time but it was more as a result of my relationship with my venders salesman than it was my ability to freely choose to go. I sincerely feel for you ‘fool’ as I find myself right now in a very similar situation. If not for my ability to play music and the instrument I chose to play being in such high demand among bands in this city I would probably find myself along with others under a bridge somewhere. But I do take a ‘stiff upper lip’, ‘my chin up’, ‘hope for a new tomorrow’ and all those other worn out cliches to heart. Good luck to you and your’s fool!

Can’t be a Texans fan, now or ever. This is one of the most gutless, heartless, and unfocused teams in the NFL, and that’s why they will never be a winner. I started rooting for the Saints when the Oilers left, and the Texans haven’t swayed me one bit. I laugh my head off with every crushing defeat. It’s so funny to watch the debacles over and over. I had a good time Sunday watching my Saints kick butt and watching the Texans get theirs kicked. Go Saints!!

[I believe that you are at the wrong blog. I would very much like the Saints to have success given that they haven't even been to a Super Bowl since their existence over 40 years ago. What's their excuse? -S]